The Outsiders is an influential novel about the struggles of social class and identity that many schools read. It was written by S.H. Hinton and was published in 1967 by Viking Press. Edgewood is one of the schools that reads The Outsiders, and they even have a day dedicated to it for the eighth graders to celebrate. 

For the event, students would dress up as greasers and Socs, who are teenage boys and characters from the novel. The greasers are characterized with black leather jackets, red bandanas, dark-colored jeans, and greased back hair. On the other hand, the Socs usually are dressed in pastels and softer colors. They usually wear sweaters, polo shirts, light jeans, slacks, and skirts. Additionally, the school brings out old cars for students to look at and take photos with. Outsiders day originally began when an English teacher had an idea to do it around 15 years ago. It is now a classic Edgewood tradition to do it every year so all the students can enjoy themselves and have fun. English teacher Miss Crawford said, "Do it for Ponyboy.” Eighth grader Giselle Avalos stated, “Ponyboy will always be a golden boy.” 

The book mostly takes place outside at the park around afternoon or night. It shows struggles because there were events where they had gotten into a fight and had to hide their identity. It happened because one of the Socs named Bob got mad at Ponyboy and Johnny because they were both talking to Cherry, who is his girlfriend. And that's how it made it into a fight. Another thing is when Ponyboy and Johnny had to hide their identity because they had killed one of the Socs, which got them in trouble. This novel is so unique because of the characters and their relationships. Hinton started writing this when she was 15 and wrote it in bulk. When Hinton published it she was 18. It got so popular that she made this book that everyone wanted it!

This year’s Halloween at Edgewood was fun for everyone. The group costumes and the department costume contest made the holiday an interesting and fun day for the many people who participated in the holiday and for those who did not, but still enjoyed the event. 

Out of the many people who wore costumes, the most popular ones were inflatable costumes, Mario and Luigis, skeletons, onesies, and Minions. Multiple people were also doing group costumes with their friends. The department costume contest was interesting to watch, some of the costumes included: the language department as 101 Dalmatians, the music department as Marvel characters, the science department as horror movie characters, the history department as The Outsiders, the English department as Uno cards, the office staff as Shrek, the math department as puns/jokes, and P.E as Starbucks workers. 

When asked what she liked about Halloween and what she thought, eighth grader Andrea Garcia said, “You get to dress up and have fun with friends, so it was pretty cool." When asked about which costume she liked best, eighth grader Juliana Becerra said, “There were so many good costumes. I couldn’t pick which one was my favorite.”

There was also a pumpkin decorating competition, classes worked on them during the week to show them off to other students on Halloween day. Some of the pumpkins included a Five Nights at Freddy’s pumpkin, a Roblox man face pumpkin, and a scary face pumpkin.

Eighth grader, president of Science Olympiad, member of Speech and Debate, honors student, and a friend to many, Arielle Hsiao has been chosen for the Student Spotlight. Arielle is Chinese American and loves her culture’s food and languages. Arielle has two siblings, her older sister, Aquilin is a junior at Edgewood High School, and her younger sister, Azalyah, is a third grader at Orangewood Elementary. Arielle believes her heritage and family are some reasons why she is so successful in school, as she explains that her family places a high value on education, which pushes her to be her best. When asked about how she is so active at school, Arielle explains it is because she believes it is very important. She states, “[Being active] gives me a purpose.” She also thinks “it looks good on college applications.” She also explains “Clubs are a great way [she] can learn and express myself.” 

Brayden was elected seventh-grade cabinet president for Associated Student Body (ASB). ASB is an elective you can take at Edgewood, where your advisor guides you on your way to leadership. ASB runs our assemblies, rallies, spirit days, and so much more. “I joined ASB because it helps me with leadership skills, and it will help me be a better leader,” said Brayden. 

Aside from being in ASB and Speech and Debate, he’s also taking part in the Science Olympiad club! Science Olympiad, also known as SciOly, is a club where students specialize in different fields of science and demonstrate them in tests and competitions. 

Like everyone else, Brayden has life goals. One of them is to attend Harvard to pursue law and soon become a lawyer. In his personal life, or on his own time, he plays the violin; he’s been playing the violin for two years! He is doing pretty well in school and currently has six A’s and one B. Middle school in general is going well for him because he’s been working hard to make sure he excels in his grades. 

Brayden is considered funny and silly by some of his friends. He’s the most genuine person you’ll meet. Some say that you have got to be doing something completely wrong if Brayden doesn’t like you. His smile can easily light up the room and lighten the mood in an instant. 

Phones and earbuds are something that has been restricted in classes all throughout Edgewood. They're considered distractions in class. These two things are also able to help students focus and increase the productivity of students. The usage of earbuds and phones should start in Edgewood, as many students have said that phones and earbuds increase the efficiency and quality of their work.

In class, tedious long work assignments are often assigned, using time where students should be able to listen to music without consequence. Eighth grader Katherine Huynh says “Music can tune out distractions, improving concentration, work quality, and overall focus on assignments.” Even if earbuds or headphones are considered distracting, teachers can still let students work with music consistently as long as it is maintained in a controlled environment. In multiple classes, many English teachers, history teachers, all teachers really, have let students listen to music while working on their assignments which has greatly boosted the quality of their minds and work. It has been scientifically proven that music can help with concentration, focus, and provide an uplifting mindset. Earbuds and phones are two beautiful devices that can provide the music for such improvements. 

 Eighth grader Sophia Esguerra states that, “Sometimes students just need a mental break from work to refresh our working minds.” She says this as sometimes phones can be useful in helping students manage their stress levels whenever they are overwhelmed with studying or work assignments. Having a device for students to have a mental refresher can greatly increase their mental health, boost their tired minds, and provide inspiration for certain assignments. 

   Additionally phones are a great tool for students who want ideas for writing assignments or to access certain websites to help them with their research. Phones don’t have any restrictions, so it is a great tool to find sources when researching multiple topics. In addition, phones are also useful when it comes to private, personal family matters. When it comes to contacting their child, the school wants the parent to contact the office first, but parents should also have the option to contact their children when it is an emergency. Having this multi-step plan to contact their child in times of emergency is a very hindering process which can have its setbacks. 

     In conclusion, phones and earbuds should be more viable during class hours as it provides focus, concentration, help with schoolwork, and a means of emergency communication. 

New research shows that kids who eat school lunch show improved cognitive function, higher test scores, and better attention spans. Research conducted among 46,455 adolescents from 42 different countries showed that eating healthier does improve performance in school. Out of those 46,455 kids, 50% of them, both female and male, reported higher school performance. In this study, the eating habits of kids were studied closely from what they ate at home to what they ate from their school lunch. In another study, the USDA says that 90% of schools in the U.S. are serving school lunches that meet higher nutrition standards. In conclusion, this data shows that the lunches served in all districts might be factors that may help your child perform better at school.  

In the U.S., obesity is a problem that has now become much larger and impactful. For instance, obesity affects 41.9% of adults and 19.7% of children: totaling up to $147 billion in annual healthcare costs. Based on national data, the receipt of free or price-reduced school lunches reduces obesity rates by at least 17%. Obesity is proven to increase the risks of having other major health conditions such as diabetes, asthma, heart disease, and high blood pressure. It also leads to things such as social isolation, depression, lower self-esteem, and bullying. All in all, healthier school lunches would help slowly solve the growing problem of obesity.

Lastly, school lunches are a great tool for keeping kids who live in food-insecure households fed. The WFP estimates that as of 2023, more than 333 million people in the world are facing food insecurity and do not know when or if their next meal will come. Eighth grader Nayeli Vivas states, “School lunches are great since I don't get fed at home. It's the only thing I eat. This saved my life. If the lunches are discontinued, I will not be able to eat at all. This is necessary for my survival.” In California school districts, more than 1.5 billion dollars is spent on school lunches to feed more than 4 million students, most of whom are low-income. This significantly impacts the amount of food they are fed at home since now every student has the privilege of being fed at school too. 

 In conclusion, school lunches benefit students for several reasons. School lunch programs all over the U.S. ensure that every kid has access to free or reduced-price lunch. Although many kids do not take advantage of that privilege, school lunches, as little as they may seem, benefit school performance, reduce food insecurity, and decrease obesity rates.